Every weekend, there are ‘park & chill’ events in parking lots across the city. Those can be a fun way to do some car-spotting, but parking behind a restaurant or just a strip mall just isn’t a very inspiring view. And cars are kinetic art that must be in motion to really be appreciated
Some local car clubs take their events beyond the ordinary. We met up with a secretive group in the west end, who started the weekend with a sunset meet-up at the Absolute World buildings in Mississauga. The twisted towers are known as the Marilyn Monroe Towers because of their curvaceous, hourglass shape. Perfect spot for a photoshoot.
Rather than just hanging out in the a parking lot admiring each others rides, the club planned a late night cruise to downtown Toronto. A quick stop at the local Petro-Canada for a full tank of 94 octane made sure everyone could make the 25 km trip and back, no matter how bad their gas mileage at highway speeds.
The route was a complex collection of highways; from the 409 to the 427 then across the Gardiner to the Spadina Rd exit. The club even had a photographer, and his girlfriend riding shotgun, taking pics and videos of the cars and bikes making the run downtown.
Entering the downtown core, the skyline rises like a neon mountain, gleaming against the dark reflective paint.
Some in the group are more ‘aggressive’ than others, revving their engines, shooting flames out their tailpipes and possibly exceeding the speed limit. But nothing too outrageous compared to usual Toronto driving standards.
Once downtown, the madness of the city at midnight became clear. Tens of thousands of people and cars packed together in a few square miles, all jostling for position between construction cones and police blockades. The crew parked on Queens Quay, right on the lakeshore and at the base of the CN Tower and SkyDome for the next impromptu photoshoot.
What did the gearhead hooligans do next? Ice cream. Everyone went for ice cream. Not exactly the street racing ending the story seemed to be headed towards. Still, a great night for gearheads.